Scla'ca
Formerly an independent realm, Scla'ca is now a part of the Imperial Alydaxan Dominion. Geography Thanks to monsoon rains, the land of Scla´ca is covered by tropical forest. There is only a small fertile area in the north of region which can feed just a small part of Scla´ca population. The rest of the population depends on the sea in the east or on hunting in the rainforest in the central and south parts of Scla´ca. There are also mountains in the west, which block the path to the salt desert. The people of Scla´ca usually avoid the large lake in the north-west, because its water is poisoned by salt and the people believe it is inhabited by terrible creatures. The worst insult in the Scla´ca language can be translated as: “May the screaming monkey tear out your heart.“ This monkey-shaped mountain brings fear to the hearts of the Scla´ca people for centuries. One old legend says that Roaring Mountain is in fact the petrified skull of an actual monster. It says that two thousands year ago a gigantic monkey attacked lizardfolk settlements and killed almost all of them. Only a few survivors escaped deep to the forest. The last surviving shaman came with an idea, they sacrificed five monkeys to spirits of nature, but with no effect. In a desperate situation, they used their last desperate means, they sacrificed five lizardfolk. In very same moment large a black stone fell from the sky and killed the monster. Now, this stone lies forty kilometers on the south-east from Roaring mountain and is the subject of worship. The Sky Stone lies in the center of the Scla´ca region. It is a gift of nature to the lizardfolk which, according to legends spread by the shamans, has magical power. It should protect lizardfolk from destruction in case of need. This stone, according to another legend, killed the famous Monster and created Roaring Mountain. It is a black stone twenty meters long and five meters high, situated in a big crater. The Sky Stone is the most sacred place for Scla´ca people and many of them come here to touch him and say their wishes, which they believe will come true. The rainforest which covers most of the land of Scla´ca in called simply Deep Forest. This forest provides the people with most of their resources. Meat and fruit is consumed mostly by locals, but it also provides tropical wood for trade. Many people believe that in the south, deep in the forest lies the territory of horrible monsters orthe ruins of ancient civilizations, but only few a hunters find the courage to go that far. People The population of Scla´ca consists almost entirey of lizardfolk. There are a few human merchants in the north which buy tropical wood and gold, but they are not very significant. The Scla´ca people are divided in many tribes and were united under one flag only in the early fourth century. Most power in Scla´ca is held by the ruler, but most decisions are made by meetings of the tribe leaders. Scla´ca holds together only thanks to a strong leader and is in permanent danger of dissolving. Due to the hard environment, Scla´ca people are well-built and agile. The body of all lizardfolk is covered by scales. Most of them have dark green scales, sometimes with brown spots or strips. This colour provides them with great camouflage in the forest. Leaders of tribes have more noticeable colouration, usually orange or red stripes. Scla´ca lizardfolk are usually around 180 centimeters high, with no difference between male and female. They have very long hands and legs and excel in running and climbing. Scla´ca lizardfolk prefer wearing few clothes, most of them made by skin of animals from Deep Forest. Tribe leaders wear usually clothes decorated by feathers of tropical birds. They do not have any hair and are cold-blooded. They usually reach maturity in ten years and rarely live more than fifty years. Thanks to using of medical herbs, shamans can live much longer, but rarely reach eighty years. The culture of Scla´ca is various and depends on each tribe. All tribes have a shamanistic religion, which worships nature, soil and sky. Religion wasn´t centralized, but shares similar legends and customs. All lizardfolk worship The Sky Stone and often visit it. There are various shamanic rituals in which shamans use herbs from Deep Forest to induce a trance. They have visions in such trances and some say that they can see future. These rituals are kept secret, but shamans are willing to sell herbs even to foreigners. Dealing with Scla´ca lizardfolk is very difficult, because they tend to be very impuslive. They also usually pretend to be simpleminded, mainly if they talk to foreigners. Combat techniques of Scla´ca lizardfolk are pretty simple. They use mainly spears, sometimes with a shield. A few of them also use bows, usually along with strong poisons. They usually wear hide armor, but some also fight without any armor. Tactically they prefer ambushes over straight confrontation. Lizardfolk possess only a little property, so inheritance is usually solved by the shamans or tribe leaders. Property is usually divided equally to all relatives. In the case of tribe leaders there is a different tradition. All children have the right to take part in ritual of heritage. Those who refuse to take part lose their right to heritage. The ritual of heritage is basically fight to death, until only one heir remains. It is pretty common that only the strongest child is willing to participate, but in some cases almost the whole family dies in this ritual. This ritual should ensure that only the most capable will lead the tribe. Resources Most of the riches of Scla´ca come from Deep Forest. This large rainforest provides the people with wood of tropical trees in very good quality. Also many obscure herbs are gathered by the shamans, which mix them into various alchemical potions or trade them to foreigners. The last great treasure comes from mountains in the west. The western mountains possess great deposits of gold, which is used on ritual items or for trade. Unfortunately, there is a lack of high-quality stone in the land of Scla´ca. There is also great desire for iron, which would improve the military and agriculture. Religion The original religion of Scla´ca was mainly animistic, we worship nature, sky and land. It was not organized, and every tribe had its own independent shamans. However legends, traditions and rituals were more or less same in every tribe. Rituals of Scla´ca were various, but most important was the ritual of The Sky Stone. Every year, after the end of the rainy season, all shamans and tribe leaders met at The Sky Stone, where they consumed various herbs and usually had visions, in which they spoke with spirits of nature. Scla´ca shamans were very skillful in dealing with herbs from Deep forest. During the fourth century, the Cult of the Sky emerged from the native paganism as the dominant religion in Scla'ca. References http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=17534024&postcount=19 Category:Regions Category:Regions of Telluris